Directions Media, USGIF Collaborate on Geospatial Technology Initiatives Organizations Join Forces to Support New Online Events and Conference Programming

HERNDON, VA and GLENCOE, IL--(eMediaWorld - May 19, 2009) - The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF), a non-profit organization that supports the geospatial intelligence community, and Directions Media, the leading geospatial technology publishing company, have agreed on a broad series of initiatives to support the growing demand for information on geographic information systems (GIS) and location intelligent applications.

The two organizations will be jointly promoting a webinar series on location intelligence to meet the intense demand for information about new technology innovations within the intelligence community. The series will inform and educate a growing workforce on the opportunities for employment and the applications that are needed by those engaged in homeland security and defense. In addition, both organizations will be collaborating on the programs of their respective conferences in 2009: GEOINT Symposium by USGIF, October 18-21 in San Antonio, Texas, and Location Intelligence by Directions Media, October 5-7 in Westminster, Colorado.

"Our organizations are passionate about supporting the geospatial industry in the military, intelligence and business communities," said Keith J. Masback, president, USGIF. "There is a natural synergy between our two organizations and it will go a long way in supporting our membership and the continued growth of the defense, intelligence and homeland security communities' need for geospatial technology information."

Directions Media will be moderating a session at GEOINT on mobile location-based services. Joe Francica, Directions Media's vice publisher and editor in chief, will host the session that will discuss some of the concerns and pitfalls with respect to security vulnerabilities and the unintended consequences of location-based applications on mobile handsets. "There are some huge unknowns out there with regard to commercial LBS applications and what they mean for the GEOINT community," said Francica. "We'll raise those issues and look at some solutions."

At the Location Intelligence Conference, Masback will lead a plenary session on the best practices of the GEOINT community and how they can be applied to enterprise business applications.

About USGIF

Headquartered in Herndon, Va., the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF) promotes the geospatial intelligence tradecraft and supports a stronger community of interest between government, industry, academia, professional organizations and individuals who share a mission focus around the development and application of geospatial intelligence to address national security objectives.

About Directions Media

Headquartered in Glencoe, Illinois, with offices in Huntsville, Alabama, Directions Media is the global leader in collectively covering all aspects of location technology: geographic information systems (GIS), location intelligence, mapping portals and location-based services (LBS). Directions Media consists of eight media properties: Directions Magazine, Directions Magazine français Magazine, Directions Magazine Español Magazine, the All Points Blog, the Map Hawk Blog, the Location Intelligence Annual Conference, the Rocket City Geospatial Conference, and the Directions Media Webinar Series. See more information at www.DirectionsMedia.net

Contacts: Joe Francica Directions Media Phone: 256-650-0205 E-mail: Jordan Fuhr USGIF Phone: 703-793-0109 E-mail: